Seven Samurai 七人の侍

(Hiragana Times article edited to be more reader friendly)

 

Masterless Samurai who Save Farmers Attacked by Bandits
野武士に襲われる農民を救う雇われ浪人

Seven Samurai (directed by Akira Kurosawa)
七人の侍（黒澤明監督）
This film is the most important work of Akira Kurosawa, a director who greatly influenced film makers around the world, including Steven Spielberg.
 スティーブン・スピルバーグ監督をはじめ、世界の映画監督に大きな影響を与えた黒澤明監督の代表作。
It may be taken as an action movie, but it is more like a humanist movie that describes an unjust society from the perspective of the weak.
 アクション映画ととられがちだが、弱者の視点から不条 理な世界を描いたヒューマニズム映画の面が強い。
In this movie you will find similarities with the workers who are exploited in the present income gap society seen across the world, and many people will feel sympathy for those characters even now.

この映画には世界中いたるところで見られる今日の収入格差社会で搾取される労働者との類似点があり、今見 ても登場人物に共鳴する人は少なくないだろう。

The film is set in the Age of Civil Wars (Fuedal Ages) in a small farm village in the mountains.
時は中世の戦国時代、舞台は山間の小さな農村。
Every year after the autumn harvest a group of bandits appears in the village to plunder food.
毎年、秋の収穫期を終えると盗賊化した野武士の一団が食料を略奪しにやって来る。
If the villagers try to fight, it is obvious that they will all be killed.
戦えば皆殺しにされてしま う。
The villagers can do nothing.
農民は、なすすべもない。
After discussing what to do, they make up their mind to hire masterless samurai.
その対策を話し合い、結局、浪人を雇って守ってもらうことになる。
Four farmers go to the town to find them, but samurai who will protect a farm village that can only pay them in food are hard to find.
農民4人で街へ浪人を探しに行くが、食べ物しか差し出せな い農村を守る侍はなかなか現れない。
After a while, Kanbei, a samurai who sympathizes with the poor farmers appears.
しばらくすると貧しい農民に同情する侍、勘兵衛が現れる。
He gathers 7 samurai including himself.
そして7人の侍が集められた。
All conceivable measures are taken to protect the village, and the farmers also fight against the bandits with bamboo spears.
村の防衛に対してさまざまな対策が施され、農民も竹槍を持って防衛 にあたる。
Meantime, the film contains side stories that include a farmer cutting his daughter’s hair because of his fear of the samurai, the love between the daughter and a young samurai, and a farmer who goes to save his abducted wife.
この間、侍たちを恐れて娘の髪を切る親、その娘と若い侍の恋、さらわれた女房を救けに行く農民などが盛り込まれる。
Before long a group of bandits comes and a fierce battle begins.
やがて、野武士の一団がやって来て、激しい戦いが始まった。
Both the samurai and farmers fight for their lives.
侍も農民も必死に戦う。
The farmers, full of long-held hostility, attack the bandits mercilessly.
積年の恨みを持つ農民は野武士に容赦なく襲い掛かる。
After the horrific battle is over, at last all the bandits are completely destroyed.
壮絶な戦いは終わ り、ついに野武士を全滅させた。
Although four of the seven samurai are killed, a peace comes to the village.
7人の侍のうち4人が犠牲となるが、村には平和が訪れる。
Kanbei murmurs to the surviving samurai:
勘兵衛は、生き残った2人につぶやく。
“The real winners are not us but those farmers.”
「勝ったのは、あの百姓た ちだ。私たちではない」と。
Starring Toshiro Mifune and Takashi Shimura, this black and white film runs to 207 minutes.
主演は三船敏郎、志村喬。モノクロ、207分の大作。
Since it was made in 1954, the quality of the picture and sound are not good, but it is very realistic and viewers are overwhelmed by its power.
1954年の作品なので画質、音声はよくないが、リアリティにあふれた、迫力ある映像に圧倒される。
Lots of films using the “Seven Samurai” motif were produced later, including the Hollywood picture “The Magnificent Seven.” “The Seven Samurai” Received the “Venezia Silver Lion” award.
 ハリウッド映画「荒野の七人」をはじめ、「七人の侍」をモチーフにした作品が後に数多く制作された。ヴェネチア銀獅子賞を受賞。